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$Title{History Of The Conquest Of Peru
Chapter IV: Part I}
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$Author{Prescott, William H.}
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$Date{1864}
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Title:       History Of The Conquest Of Peru
Book:        Book II: Discovery Of Peru
Author:      Prescott, William H.
Date:        1864

Chapter IV: Part I

Indignation Of The Governor. - Stern Resolution Of Pizarro. - Prosecution Of
The Voyage. - Brilliant Aspect Of Tumbez. - Discoveries Along The Coast. -
Return To Panama. - Pizarro Embarks For Spain.

     1527-1528.

     Not long after Almagro's departure, Pizarro sent off the remaining
vessel, under the pretext of its being put in repair at Panama.  It probably
relieved him of a part of his followers, whose mutinous spirit made them an
obstacle rather than a help in his forlorn condition, and with whom he was the
more willing to part from the difficulty of finding subsistence on the barren
spot which he now occupied.

     Great was the dismay occasioned by the return of Almagro and his
followers, in the little community of Panama; for the letter, surreptitiously
conveyed in the ball of cotton, fell into the hands for which it was intended,
and the contents soon got abroad with the usual quantity of exaggeration.  The
haggard and dejected mien of the adventurers, of itself, told a tale
sufficiently disheartening, and it was soon generally believed that the few
ill-fated survivors of the expedition were detained against their will by
Pizarro, to end their days with their disappointed leader on his desolate
island.

     Pedro de los Rios, the governor, was so much incensed at the result of
the expedition, and the waste of life it had occasioned to the colony, that
he turned a deaf ear to all the applications of Luque and Almagro for further
countenance in the affair; he derided their sanguine anticipations of the
future, and finally resolved to send an officer to the isle of Gallo, with
orders to bring back every Spaniard whom he should find still living in that
dreary abode.  Two vessels were immediately despatched for the purpose, and
placed under charge of a cavalier named Tafur, a native of Cordova.

     Meanwhile Pizarro and his followers were experiencing all the miseries
which might have been expected from the character of the barren spot on which
they were imprisoned.  They were, indeed, relieved from all apprehensions of
the natives, since these had quitted the island on its occupation by the
white men; but they had to endure the pains of hunger even in a greater
degree than they had formerly experienced in the wild woods of the
neighbouring continent.  Their principal food was crabs and such shell-fish
as they could scantily pick up along the shores.  Incessant storms of thunder
and lightning, for it was the rainy season, swept over the devoted island,
and drenched them with a perpetual flood.  Thus, half-naked, and pining with
famine, there were few in that little company who did not feel the spirit of
enterprise quenched within them, or who looked for any happier termination
of their difficulties than that afforded by a return to Panama.  The
appearance of Tafur, therefore, with his two vessels, well stored with
provisions, was greeted with all the rapture that the crew of a sinking wreck
might feel on the arrival of some unexpected succour; and the only thought,
after satisfying the immediate cravings of hunger, was to embark and leave
the detested isle for ever.

     But by the same vessel letters came to Pizarro from his two
confederates, Luque and Almagro, beseeching him not to despair in his present
extremity, but to hold fast to his original purpose.  To return under the
present circumstances would be to seal the fate of the expedition; and they
solemnly engaged, if he would remain firm at his post, to furnish him in a
short time with the necessary means for going forward. ^1

[Footnote 1: Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 182. - Zarate,
Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 2. - Montesinos, Annales, Ms., ano 1527. -
Herrera, Hist. General dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 3. - Naharro Relacion Sumaria,
Ms.]

     A ray of hope was enough for the courageous spirit of Pizarro.  It does
not appear that he himself had entertained, at any time, thoughts of
returning.  If he had, these words of encouragement entirely banished them
from his bosom, and he prepared to stand the fortune of the cast on which he
had so desperately ventured.  He knew, however, that solicitations or
remonstrances would avail little with the companions of his enterprise; and
he probably did not care to win over the more timid spirits who, by
perpetually looking back, would only be a clog on his future movements.  He
announced his own purpose, however, in a laconic but decided manner,
characteristic of a man more accustomed to act than to talk, and well
calculated to make an impression on his rough followers.

     Drawing his sword, he traced a line with it on the sand from east to
west.  Then turning towards the south, "Friends and comrades!" he said, "on
that side are toil, hunger, nakedness, the drenching storm, desertion, and
death; on this side, ease and pleasure.  There lies Peru with its riches;
here, Panama and its poverty.  Choose, each man, what best becomes a brave
Castilian.  For my part, I go to the south." So saying, he stepped across the
line. ^2 He was followed by the brave pilot Ruiz; next by Pedro de Candia, a
cavalier, born, as his name imports, in one of the isles of Greece.  Eleven
others successively crossed the line, thus intimating their willingness to
abide the fortunes of their leader, for good or for evil. ^3 Fame, to quote
the enthusiastic language of an ancient chronicler, has commemorated the
names of this little band, "who thus, in the face of difficulties unexampled
in history, with death rather than riches for their reward, preferred it all
to abandoning their honor, and stood firm by their leader as an example of
loyalty to future ages." ^4

[Footnote 2: "Obedeciola Pizarro y antes que se egecutase saco un Punal, y
con notable animo hizo con la punta una raya de Oriente a Poniente; y
senalando al medio dia, que era la parte de su noticia, y derrotero dijo:
camaradas y amigos esta parte es la de la muerte, de los trabajos, de las
hambres, de la desnudez, de los aguaceros, y desamparos; la otra la del
gusto: Por aqui se ba a Panama a ser pobres, por alla al Peru a ser ricos.
Escoja el que fuere buen Castellano lo que mas bien le estubiere.  Diciendo
esto paso la raya: siguieronle Barthome Ruiz natural de Moguer, Pedro de
Candi Griego, natural de Candia." Montesinos, Annales, Ms., ano 1527.]

[Footnote 3: The names of these thirteen faithful companions are preserved
in the convention made with the Crown two years later, where they are
suitably commemorated for their loyalty.  Their names should not be omitted
in a history of the Conquest of Peru.  They were "Bartolome Ruiz, Cristoval
de Peralta, Pedro de Candia, Domingo de Soria Luce, Nicolas de Ribera,
Francisco de Cuellar, Alonso de Molina, Pedro Alcon, Garcia de Jerez, Anton
de Carrion, Alonso Briceno, Martin de Paz, Joan de la Torre."]

[Footnote 4: "Estos fueron los trece de la fama.  Estos los que cercados de
los mayores trabajos que pudo el Mundo ofrecer a hombres, y los que estando
mas para esperar la muerte que las riquezas que se les prometian, todo lo
pospusieron a la honra, y siguieron a su capitan y caudillo para egemplo de
lealtad en lo futuro." Montesinos, Annales, Ms., ano 1527.]

     But the act excited no such admiration in the mind of Tafur, who looked
on it as one of gross disobedience to the commands of the governor, and as
little better than madness, involving the certain destruction of the parties
engaged in it.  He refused to give any sanction to it himself by leaving one
of his vessels with the adventurers to prosecute their voyage, and it was
with great difficulty that he could be persuaded even to allow them a part
of the stores which he had brought for their support.  This had no influence
on their determination, and the little party, bidding adieu to their
returning comrades, remained unshaken in their purpose of abiding the
fortunes of their commander. ^5

[Footnote 5: Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 2. - Montesinos, Annales,
Ms., ano 1527. - Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, Ms. - Herrera, Hist. General,
dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 3.]

     There is something striking to the imagination in the spectacle of these
few brave spirits, thus consecrating themselves to a daring enterprise, which
seemed as far above their strength as any recorded in the fabulous annals of
knight-errantry.  A handful of men, without food, without clothing, almost
without arms, without knowledge of the land to which they were bound, without
vessel to transport them, were here left on a lonely rock in the ocean with
the avowed purpose of carrying on a crusade against a powerful empire,
staking their lives on its success.  What is there in the legends of chivalry
that surpasses it?  This was the crisis of Pizarro's fate.  There are moments
in the lives of men, which, as they are seized or neglected, decide their
future destiny. ^6 Had Pizarro faltered from his strong purpose, and yielded
to the occasion, now so temptingly presented, for extricating himself and his
broken band from their desperate position, his name would have been buried
with his fortunes, and the conquest of Peru would have been left for other
and more successful adventurers.  But his constancy was equal to the
occasion, and his conduct here proved him competent to the perilous post he
had assumed, and inspired others with a confidence in him which was the best
assurance of success.

[Footnote 6: This common sentiment is expressed with uncommon beauty by the
fanciful Boiardo, where he represents Rinaldo as catching Fortune, under the
guise of the fickle fairy Morgana, by the forelock.  The Italian reader may
not be displeased to refresh his memory with it.

     "Chi cerca in questo mondo aver tesoro,
     O diletto, e piacere, honore, e stato,
     Ponga la mano a questa chioma d'oro,
     Ch'lo porto in fronte, e lo faro beato;
     Ma quando ha in destro si fatto lavoro
     Non prenda indugio, che'l tempo passato
     Perduto e tutto, e non ritorna mai,
     Ed io mi volto, e lui lascio con guai."

Orlando, Innamorato, lib. 2, canto 8.]

     In the vessel that bore back Tafur and those who seceded from the
expedition the pilot Ruiz was also permitted to return, in order to cooperate
with Luque and Almagro in their application for further succour.

     Not long after the departure of the ships, it was decided by Pizarro to
abandon his present quarters, which had little to recommend them, and which,
he reflected, might now be exposed to annoyance from the original
inhabitants, should they take courage and return, on learning the diminished
number of the white men.  The Spaniards, therefore, by his orders,
constructed a rude boat or raft, on which they succeeded in transporting
themselves to the little island of Gorgona, twenty-five leagues to the north
of their present residence.  It lay about five leagues from the continent,
and was uninhabited.  It had some advantages over the isle of Gallo; for it
stood higher above the sea, and was partially covered with wood, which
afforded shelter to a species of pheasant, and the hare or rabbit of the
country, so that the Spaniards, with their crossbows, were enabled to procure
a tolerable supply of game.  Cool streams that issued from the living rock
furnished abundance of water, though the drenching rains that fell, without
intermission, left them in no danger of perishing by thirst.  From this
annoyance they found some protection in the rude huts which they constructed;
though here, as in their former residence, they suffered from the no less
intolerable annoyance of venomous insects, which multiplied and swarmed in
the exhalations of the rank and stimulated soil.  In this dreary abode
Pizarro omitted no means by which to sustain the drooping spirits of his men.
Morning prayers were duly said, and the evening hymn to the Virgin was
regularly chanted; the festivals of the church were carefully commemorated,
and every means taken by their commander to give a kind of religious
character to his enterprise, and to inspire his rough followers with a
confidence in the protection of Heaven, that might support them in their
perilous circumstances. ^7

[Footnote 7: "Cada Manana daban gracias a Dios: a las tardes decian la Salve,
i otras Oraciones, por las Horas: sabian las Fiestas, i enian cuenta con los
Viernes, i Domingos." Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 3.]

     In these uncomfortable quarters, their chief employment was to keep
watch on the melancholy ocean, that they might hail the first signal of the
anticipated succour.  But many a tedious month passed away, and no sign of
it appeared.  All around was the same wide waste of waters, except to the
eastward, where the frozen crest of the Andes, touched with the ardent sun
of the equator, glowed like a ridge of fire along the whole extent of the
great continent.  Every speck in the distant horizon was carefully noticed,
and the drifting timber or masses of sea-weed, heaving to and fro on the
bosom of the waters, was converted by their imaginations into the promised
vessel; till, sinking under successive disappointments, hope gradually gave
way to doubt, and doubt settled into despair. ^8

[Footnote 8: "Al cabo de muchos Dias aguardando, estaban tan angustiados, que
los salages, que se hacian bien dentro de la Mar, les parecia, que era el
Navio." Herrera, Hist General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 4.]

     Meanwhile the vessel of Tafur had reached the port of Panama.  The
tidings which she brought of the inflexible obstinacy of Pizarro and his
followers filled the governor with indignation.  He could look on it in no
other light than as an act of suicide, and steadily refused to send further
assistance to men who were obstinately bent on their own destruction.  Yet
Luque and Almagro were true to their engagements.  They represented to the
governor, that, if the conduct of their comrade was rash, it was at least in
the service of the Crown, and in prosecuting the great work of discovery.
Rios had been instructed, on his taking the government, to aid Pizarro in the
enterprise; and to desert him now would be to throw away the remaining chance
of success, and to incur the responsibility of his death and that of the
brave men who adhered to him.  These remonstrances, at length, so far
operated on the mind of that functionary, that he reluctantly consented that
a vessel should be sent to the island of Gorgona, but with no more hands than
were necessary to work her, and with positive instructions to Pizarro to
return in six months and report himself at Panama, whatever might be the
future results of his expedition.

     Having thus secured the sanction of the executive, the two associates
lost no time in fitting out a small vessel with stores and a supply of arms
and ammunition, and despatched it to the island.  The unfortunate tenants of
this little wilderness, who had now occupied it for seven months, ^9 hardly
dared to trust their senses when they descried the white sails of the
friendly bark coming over the waters.  And although, when the vessel anchored
off the shore, Pizarro was disappointed to find that it brought no additional
recruits for the enterprise, yet he greeted it with joy, as affording the
means of solving the great problem of the existence of the rich southern
empire, and of thus opening the way for its future conquest.  Two of his men
were so ill, that it was determined to leave them in the care of some of the
friendly Indians who had continued with him through the whole of his sojourn,
and to call for them on his return.  Taking with him the rest of his hardy
followers and the natives of Tumbez, he embarked, and, speedily weighing
anchor, bade adieu to the "Hell," as it was called by the Spaniards, which
had been the scene of so much suffering and such undaunted resolution. ^10

[Footnote 9: "Estubieron con estos trabajos con igualdad de animo siete
meses" Montesinos, Annales, Ms., ano 1527.]

[Footnote 10: Xerez, Conq. del Peru, ap. Barcia, tom. III. p. 182. -
Montesinos, Annales, Ms., ano 1527. - Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, Ms. -
Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 4. - Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y
Conq., Ms.]

     Every heart was now elated with hope, as they found themselves once more
on the waters, under the guidance of the good pilot Ruiz, who, obeying the
directions of the Indians, proposed to steer for the land of Tumbez, which
would bring them at once into the golden empire of the Incas, - the El
Dorado, of which they had been so long in pursuit.  Passing by the dreary
isle of Gallo, which they had such good cause to remember, they stood farther
out to sea until they made Point Tacumez, near which they had landed on their
previous voyage.  They did not touch at any part of the coast, but steadily
held on their way, though considerably impeded by the currents, as well as
by the wind, which blew with little variation from the south.  Fortunately,
the wind was light, and, as the weather was favorable, their voyage, though
slow, was not uncomfortable.  In a few days, they came in sight of Point
Pasado, the limit of the pilot's former navigation; and, crossing the line,
the little bark entered upon those unknown seas which had never been ploughed
by European keel before.  The coast, they observed, gradually declined from
its former bold and rugged character, gently sloping towards the shore, and
spreading out into sandy plains, relieved here and there by patches of
uncommon richness and beauty; while the white cottages of the natives
glistening along the margin of the sea, and the smoke that rose among the
distant hills, intimated the increasing population of the country.

     At length, after the lapse of twenty days from their departure from the
island, the adventurous vessel rounded the point of St. Helena, and glided
smoothly into the waters of the beautiful gulf of Guayaquil.  The country was
here studded along the shore with towns and villages, though the mighty chain
of the Cordilleras, sweeping up abruptly from the coast, left but a narrow
strip of emerald verdure, through which numerous rivulets, spreading
fertility around them, wound their way into the sea.

     The voyagers were now abreast of some of the most stupendous heights of
this magnificent range; Chimborazo, with its broad round summit, towering
like the dome of the Andes, and Cotopaxi, with its dazzling cone of silvery
white, that knows no change except from the action of its own volcanic fires;
for this mountain is the most terrible of the American volcanoes, and was in
formidable activity at no great distance from the period of our narrative.
Well pleased with the signs of civilization that opened on them at every
league of their progress, the Spaniards, at length, came to anchor, off the
island of Santa Clara, lying at the entrance of the bay of Tumbez. ^11

[Footnote 11: According to Garcilasso, two years elapsed between the
departure from Gorgona and the arrival at Tumbez.  (Com. Real., Parte 2, hb.
1, cap. 11.) Such gross defiance of chronology is rather uncommon even in the
narratives of these transactions, where it is as difficult to fix a precise
date, amidst the silence, rather than the contradictions, of contemporary
statements, as if the events had happened before the deluge.]

     The place was uninhabited, but was recognized by the Indians on board,
as occasionally resorted to by the warlike people of the neighbouring isle
of Puna, for purposes of sacrifice and worship.  The Spaniards found on the
spot a few bits of gold rudely wrought into various shapes, and probably
designed as offerings to the Indian deity.  Their hearts were cheered, as the
natives assured them they would see abundance of the same precious metal in
their own city of Tumbez.

     The following morning they stood across the bay for this place.  As they
drew near, they beheld a town of considerable size, with many of the
buildings apparently of stone and plaster, situated in the bosom of a
fruitful meadow, which seemed to have been redeemed from the sterility of the
surrounding country be careful and minute irrigation.  When at some distance
from shore, Pizarro saw standing towards him several large balsas, which were
found to be filled with warriors going on an expedition against the island
of Puna.  Running alongside of the Indian flotilla, he invited some of the
chiefs to come on board of his vessel.  The Peruvians gazed with wonder on
every object which met their eyes, and especially on their own countrymen,
whom they had little expected to meet there.  The latter informed them in
what manner they had fallen into the hands of the strangers, whom they
described as a wonderful race of beings, that had come thither for no harm,
but solely to be made acquainted with the country and its inhabitants.  This
account was confirmed by the Spanish commander, who persuaded the Indians to
return in their balsas and report what they had learned to their townsmen,
requesting them at the same time to provide his vessel with refreshments, as
it was his desire to enter into a friendly intercourse with the natives.

     The people of Tumbez were gathered along the shore, and were gazing with
unutterable amazement on the floating castle, which, now having dropped
anchor, rode lazily at its moorings in their bay.  They eagerly listened to
the accounts of their countrymen, and instantly reported the affair to the
curaca or ruler of the district, who, conceiving that the strangers must be
beings of a superior order, prepared at once to comply with their request.
It was not long before several balsas were seen steering for the vessel laden
with bananas, plantains, yuca, Indian corn, sweet potatoes, pine-apples,
cocoa-nuts, and other rich products of the bountiful vale of Tumbez.  Game
and fish, also, were added, with a number of llamas, of which Pizarro had
seen the rude drawings belonging to Balboa, but of which till now he had met
with no living specimen.  He examined this curious animal, the Peruvian
sheep, - or, as the Spaniards called it, the "little camel" of the Indians,
- with much interest, greatly admiring the mixture of wool and hair which
supplied the natives with the materials for their fabrics.

     At that time there happened to be at Tumbez an Inca noble, or orejon,
- for so, as I have already noticed, men of his rank were called by the
Spaniards, from the huge ornaments of gold attached to their ears.  He
expressed great curiosity to see the wonderful strangers, and had,
accordingly, come out with the balsas for the purpose.  It was easy to
perceive from the superior quality of his dress, as well as from the
deference paid to him by the others, that he was a person of consideration,
and Pizarro received him with marked distinction.  He showed him the
different parts of the ship, explaining to him the uses of whatever engaged
his attention, and answering his numerous queries, as well as he could, by
means of the Indian interpreters.  The Peruvian chief was especially desirous
of knowing whence and why Pizarro and his followers had come to these shores.
The Spanish captain replied, that he was the vassal of a great prince, the
greatest and most powerful in the world, and that he had come to this country
to assert his master's lawful supremacy over it.  He had further come to
rescue the inhabitants from the darkness of unbelief in which they were now
wandering.  They worshipped an evil spirit, who would sink their souls into
everlasting perdition; and he would give them the knowledge of the true and
only God, Jesus Christ, since to believe on him was eternal salvation. ^12

[Footnote 12: The text abridges somewhat the discourse of the military
polemic; which is reported at length by Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, lib.
10, cap. 4. - See also Montesinos, Annales, Ms., ano 1527 - Conq. i Pob. del
Piru, Ms. - Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, Ms - Relacion del Primer. Descub. Ms.]

     The Indian prince listened with deep attention and apparent wonder; but
answered nothing.  It may be, that neither he nor his interpreters had any
very distinct ideas of the doctrines thus abruptly revealed to them.  It may
be that he did not believe there was any other potentate on earth greater
than the Inca; none, at least, who had a better right to rule over his
dominions.  And it is very possible he was not disposed to admit that the
great luminary whom he worshipped was inferior to the God of the Spaniards.
But whatever may have passed in the untutored mind of the barbarian, he did
not give vent to it, but maintained a discreet silence, without any attempt
to controvert or to convince his Christian antagonist.

     He remained on board the vessel till the hour of dinner, of which he
partook with the Spaniards, expressing his satisfaction at the strange
dishes, and especially pleased with the wine, which he pronounced far
superior to the fermented liquors of his own country.  On taking leave, he
courteously pressed the Spaniards to visit Tumbez, and Pizarro dismissed him
with the present, among other things, of an iron hatchet, which had greatly
excited his admiration; for the use of iron, as we have seen, was as little
known to the Peruvians as to the Mexicans.

     On the day following, the Spanish captain sent one of his own men, named
Alonso de Molina, on shore, accompanied by a negro who had come in the vessel
from Panama, together with a present for the curaca of some swine and
poultry, neither of which were indigenous to the New World.  Towards evening
his emissary returned with a fresh supply of fruits and vegetables, that the
friendly people sent to the vessel.  Molina had a wondrous tale to tell.  On
landing, he was surrounded by the natives, who expressed the greatest
astonishment at his dress, his fair complexion, and his long beard.  The
women, especially, manifested great curiosity in respect to him, and Molina
seemed to be entirely won by their charms and captivating manners.  He
probably intimated his satisfaction by his demeanour, since they urged him
to stay among them, promising in that case to provide him with a beautiful
wife.

     Their surprise was equally great at the complexion of his sable
companion.  They could not believe it was natural, and tried to rub off the
imaginary dye with their hands.  As the African bore all this with
characteristic good-humor, displaying at the same time his rows of ivory
teeth, they were prodigiously delighted. ^13 The animals were no less above
their comprehension; and, when the cock crew, the simple people clapped their
hands, and inquired what he was saying. ^14 Their intellects were so
bewildered by sights so novel, that they seemed incapable of distinguishing
between man and brute.

[Footnote 13: "No se cansaban de mirarle, hacianle labar, para ver si se le
quitaba la Tinta negra, i el lo hacia de buena gana, riendose, i mostrando
sus Dientes blancos." Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 5.]

[Footnote 14: Ibid., ubi supra.]

     Molina was then escorted to the residence of the curaca, whom he found
living in much state, with porters stationed at his doors, and with a
quantity of gold and silver vessels, from which he was served.  He was then
taken to different parts of the Indian city, saw a fortress built of rough
stone, and, though low, spreading over a large extent of ground. ^15 Near this
was a temple; and the Spaniard's description of its decorations, blazing with
gold and silver, seemed so extravagant, that Pizarro, distrusting his whole
account, resolved to send a more discreet and trustworthy emissary on the
following day. ^16

[Footnote 15: "Cerca del solia estar una fortaleza muy fuerte y de linda
obra, hecha por los Yngas reyes del Cuzco y senores de todo el Peru. . . .
. .  Ya esta el edificio desta fortaleza muy gastado y deshecho: mas no para
que dexe de dar muestra de lo mucho que fue." Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap.
4.]

[Footnote 16: Conq. i Pob. del Piru, Ms. - Herrera, Hist. General, loc. cit -
Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1 cap. 2.]

     The person selected was Pedro de Candia, the Greek cavalier mentioned as
one of the first who intimated his intention to share the fortunes of his
commander.  He was sent on shore, dressed in complete mail as became a good
knight, with his sword by his side, and his arquebuse on his shoulder.  The
Indians were even more dazzled by his appearance than by Molina's, as the sun
fell brightly on his polished armour, and glanced from his military weapons.
They had heard much of the formidable arquebuse from their townsmen who had
come in the vessel, and they besought Candia "to let it speak to them." He
accordingly set up a wooden board as a target, and, taking deliberate aim,
fired off the musket.  The flash of the powder and the startling report of the
piece, as the board, struck by the ball, was shivered into splinters, filled
the natives with dismay.  Some fell on the ground, covering their faces with
their hands, and others approached the cavalier with feelings of awe, which
were gradually dispelled by the assurance they received from the smiling
expression of his countenance. ^17

[Footnote 17: It is moreover stated that the Indians, desirous to prove still
further the superhuman nature of the Spanish cavalier, let loose on him a
tiger - a jaguar probably - which was caged in the royal fortress.  But Don
Pedro was a good Catholic, and he gently laid the cross which he wore round
his neck on the animal's back, who, instantly forgetting his ferocious nature,
crouched at the cavalier's feet, and began to play round him in innocent
gambols.  The Indians, now more amazed than ever, nothing doubted of the
sanctity of their guest, and bore him in triumph on their shoulders to the
temple. - This credible anecdote is repeated, without the least qualification
or distrust, by several contemporary writers.  (See Naharro, Relacion Sumaria,
Ms. - Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 3, lib. 10, cap. 5. - Cieza de Leon,
Cronica, cap. 54. - Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 2, lib. 1, cap. 12.) This
last author may have had his version from Candia's own son, with whom he tells
us he was brought up at school.  It will no doubt find as easy admission with
those of the present day, who conceive that the age of miracles has not yet
past]

     They then showed him the same hospitable attentions which they had paid
to Molina; and his description of the marvels of the place, on his return,
fell nothing short of his predecessor's.  The fortress, which was surrounded
by a triple row of wall, was strongly garrisoned.  The temple he described as
literally tapestried with plates of gold and silver.  Adjoining this structure
was a sort of convent appropriated to the Inca's destined brides, who
manifested great curiosity to see him.  Whether this was gratified is not
clear; but Candia described the gardens of the convent, which he entered, as
glowing with imitations of fruits and vegetables all in pure gold and silver!
^18 He had seen a number of artisans at work, whose sole business seemed to be
to furnish these gorgeous decorations for the religious houses.

[Footnote 18: "Que habia visto un jardin donde las yerbas eran de oro imitando
en un todo a las naturales, arboles con frutas de lo mismo, y otras muchas
cosas a este modo, con que aficiono grandemente a sus companeros a esta
conquista." Montesinos, Annales, ano 1527.]

     The reports of the cavalier may have been somewhat over-colored. ^19 It
was natural that men coming from the dreary wilderness, in which they had been
buried the last six months, should have been vividly impressed by the tokens
of civilization which met them on the Peruvian coast.  But Tumbez was a
favorite city of the Peruvian princes.  It was the most important place on the
northern borders of the empire, contiguous to the recent acquisition of Quito.
The great Tupac Yupanqui had established a strong fortress there, and peopled
it with a colony of mitimaes.  The temple, and the house occupied by the
Virgins of the Sun, had been erected by Huayna Capac, and were liberally
endowed by that Inca, after the sumptuous fashion of the religious
establishments of Peru.  The town was well supplied with water by numerous
aqueducts, and the fruitful valley in which it was embosomed, and the ocean
which bathed its shores, supplied ample means of subsistence to a considerable
population.  But the cupidity of the Spaniards, after the Conquest, was not
slow in despoiling the place of its glories; and the site of its proud towers
and temples, in less than half a century after that fatal period, was to be
traced only by the huge mass of ruins that encumbered the ground. ^20

[Footnote 19: The worthy knight's account does not seem to have found favor
with the old Conqueror, so often cited in these pages, who says, that, when
they afterwards visited Tumbez, the Spaniards found Candia's relation a lie
from beginning to end, except, indeed, in respect to the temple; though the
veteran acknowledges that what was deficient in Tumbez was more than made up
by the magnificence of other places in the empire not then visited.  "Lo cual
fue mentira; porque despues que todos los Espanoles entramos en ella, se vio
por vista de ojos haber mentido en todo, salvo en lo del templo, que este era
cosa de ver, aunque mucho mas de lo que aquel encarecio, lo que falto en esta
ciudad, se hallo despues en otras que muchas leguas mas adelante se
descubrieron." Relacion del Primer. Descub., Ms.]

[Footnote 20: Cieza de Leon, who crossed this part of the country in 1548,
mentions the wanton manner in which the hand of the Conqueror had fallen on
the Indian edifices, which lay in ruin, even at that early period.  Cronica,
cap. 67.]

     The Spaniards were nearly mad with joy, says an old writer, at receiving
these brilliant tidings of the Peruvian city.  All their fond dreams were now
to be realized, and they had at length reached the realm which had so long
flitted in visionary splendor before them.  Pizarro expressed his gratitude to
Heaven for having crowned his labors with so glorious a result; but he
bitterly lamented the hard fate which, by depriving him of his followers,
denied him, at such a moment, the means of availing himself of his success.
Yet he had no cause for lamentation; and the devout Catholic saw in this very
circumstance a providential interposition which prevented the attempt at
conquest, while such attempts would have been premature.  Peru was not yet
torn asunder by the dissensions of rival candidates for the throne; and,
united and strong under the sceptre of a warlike monarch, she might well have
bid defiance to all the forces that Pizarro could muster.  "It was manifestly
the work of Heaven," exclaims a devout son of the Church, "that the natives of
the country should have received him in so kind and loving a spirit, as best
fitted to facilitate the conquest; for it was the Lord's hand which led him
and his followers to this remote region for the extension of the holy faith,
and for the salvation of souls." ^21

[Footnote 21: "I si le recibiesen con amor, hiciese su Mrd. lo que mas
conveniente le pareciese al efecto de su conquista: porque tenia entendido,
que el haverlos traido Dios era para que su santa fe se dilatase i aquellas
almas se salvasen." Naharro, Relacion Sumaria, Ms.]